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Cheese in the Trap: Episode 14 Recap

Oh the feels! And I mean seriously – I had the feels. I had my heart melt, my heart freeze, my heart shatter, and then my heart slowly be rebuilt. It feels like this drama has so many more stories to tell, but then you realize that it will never finish telling it all. I can only hope that we can reach some sort of peace with where the characters are going. So far, this episode did not give me much peace, but hopefully it can be resolved next week.

And once again, during the “episode title” interstitial, Seol once again hugs a man. Doesn’t matter if it’s Jung or In Ho at this point, but she’s always hugging or being hugged.

Post-hug with In Ho, both hearts are racing. Seol doesn’t exactly understand what is going on but now gets the hint that he likes her. And In Ho regrets making such a forward action to her. But a text from Hammer quickly brings him back down to reality. The week is over and 10 million is owed. In Ho realizes that if he can win the concours, combined with his savings and advance pay he can pay the 10 million. He just needs a month.

Surprisingly Hammer agrees to the terms. He lies to the big boss that it’s taking a while to track In Ho, but he will bring both In Ho and the money back to Busan in a month. Sang Keun pities In Ho’s situation and gives him some of his own savings as well; he’s such a nice meek kid that it’s a shame he’s involved with the gang.

Eun Taek texts Bora asking to meet at a jewelry store. Bora thinks he’s getting her a pair of earrings as a gift and selects one she likes, but he ends up telling her that it’s actually for Mona. He owes her a great deal as she bought him food and helped him become a model. Bora’s mood sours, and Seol tries to cheer her up later in class by getting coffee. They leave their seats for a bit, and Da Young suspiciously looks over at their desk. Obviously she’s looking for Jung’s notes.

When Seol and Bora get back, Seol realizes that the notes are gone. Another classmate asks if Da Young knows what happened to the notes since she was over at their desk, but Da Young vehemently denies doing anything. She only claims to have borrowed Seol’s pen for the classmate’s benefit. She quickly diverts suspicion to Sang Chul – after all, she saw him hanging around Seol’s desk earlier.

With no other evidence, Da Young leads her friends, Seol and Bora to the copy center where they confront Sang Chul. He had made copies of Professor Kang’s class materials – and they really are those – so Da Young quickly blames Seol of suspecting him. Gosh this girl is so slick. Seol and Bora insist they never suspected Sang Chul (at least, never said they did) and run off before Sang Chul can do anything to them.

That evening In Ha meets Mr. Yoo for dinner and he asks whether she’s taken any certification courses. In Ha lies that she’ll go eventually but tries to get him to buy her another place. But Mr. Yoo isn’t a pushover anymore. Not only does he not need In Ha to report about Jung’s doings now, he also wants her to get her life together by herself. He will only consider getting her a place if she finishes the certification classes. Good for dad on not giving in to In Ha.

The following morning Seol does everything she can to avoid In Ho, even feebly hiding behind a pole until he passes by. He knows she’s there, and he knows she’s doing it because she feels uncomfortable. Seol is in a daze while at school as she’s still confused on what she should do regarding In Ho’s feelings. She tries to ask Bora for advice, telling the story as if it’s about a “friend of hers” who thinks that a guy might like her but she doesn’t want to ruin the good relationship that she already has with him. Bora thinks Seol is talking about her (and it could totally apply!) but gives the following advice: “If “your friend” ignores that guy’s feelings, he will latch onto another girl so fast. Men are more fickle than women.” Heh.

It’s finally time for the exam. Seol takes it along with all of her senior sunbaes. She thinks she did well enough and goes home right after. When she hears from her mother that In Ho is at the restaurant, she opts to eat outside before going home just so she can avoid him more. In Ho overhears the conversation, and when he leaves for the night he sees Seol eating ramen at the convenience store. That’s how much she’s avoiding him!

He buys some packaged kimchi and confronts Seol about her odd behavior. Yes, he does like her. But he’s not asking her to acknowledge it. He’s also not going to do anything about it. He’ll deal with his feelings his own way, and it would just be better if she stops avoiding him. It’s actually making him feel even more uncomfortable. After all, he’s only got a month and would like it to go by with ease and happiness.

On his way home he bumps into his sister shivering as she trudges through the streets. Uncharacteristically he takes off his jacket and wraps it around her. And then, he asks if she wants to open a clothing store and manage it. He’ll get her one – not right away, but eventually. In Ha doesn’t understand what he’s trying to get at and forces him to say it straight. So In Ho does: “I’m planning to leave this place soon. I want us to go together. I’m not joking. Think about it carefully.” Aw. It’s actually a bit sad that we have to prepare for an In Ho-Departure.

The next day, Seol still awkwardly avoids In Ho, but he forces her to see him at the end of the day to go home together. She then gets her test results – she passed! So did Kyung Hwan. And so did Sang Chul. But Da Young didn’t. Sang Chul is so happy he offers to buy everyone drinks to celebrate.

As for In Ho, he’s faltering in his practice. Professor Shim scolds him for missing too many notes with his left hand and suggests that he go to the hospital to check it out. In Ho dismisses it as just temporary stiffness, and then asks if he can practice in the concert hall just once. At least then he can mimic the conditions of the concours. Shim is impressed and amused by In Ho’s sudden passion again, and tells him not to push himself too hard during practice.

At the end of the day though, Seol doesn’t go to meet In Ho to go home. (Still feeling awkward there.) She goes to a cute stationery and art store to pick up a gift for Bora’s birthday instead, telling In Ho to go on without her over the phone. As she passes by one of the bars near the school, she overhears Da Young trying to leave the bar and Sang Chul trying to make her stay.

Seol would normally just ignore it and go on her way, but drunk Sang Chul makes a stupid mistake of revealing to Da Young his secret to success: he stole Jung’s notes from Seol. Da Young actually wasn’t making things up then! Seol confronts Sang Chul and he quickly blames it on her for not giving it to him when he asked for it originally. This guy seriously has no morals. He makes himself out for a victim, saying he suffered over the grades and the membership fee incident because of Seol. She may be dating Jung but she isn’t Jung!

Seol points out that all of those things were his fault to begin with, and that he’s really got no shame. Sang Chul is so pissed that he pulls his fist back to hit her. Seol is so shocked at the action that she trips on her own two feet and falls backwards. Thankfully In Ho passes by just in time, but he assumes that Sang Chul hurt Seol so he runs with fists flying. He punches Sang Chul so hard that the big guy is thrown back, but Sang Chul returns with a kick on In Ho’s back. Other classmates rush out to stop the fight from escalating, and In Ho helps Seol get back home.

Seol worries that In Ho might be badly injured, but he assures her it’s not that bad. Sang Chul is quite weak despite how he looks. He looks at her scratched hand though, and lingers a bit too long holding it. Seol feels like she needs to address the elephant in the room, but Jung just has perfect timing and calls her just then. Before Seol can answer, In Ho puts the phone back in her pocket and asks her to just act normally like before. Just give him one month, and after that, all his feelings will be taken care of.

Jung hears from Kyung Hwan about what Sang Chul did with his notes, and also that Sang Chul snagged an interview with Sunju Produce with the help of another sunbae. Kyung Hwan bets that Sang Chul applied to Taerang Group too, and that gives Jung an idea. (It is also presumed that Seol told Jung about the incident, although we don’t exactly see it. Then again, she wouldn’t know so much information about Sang Chul’s life as Kyung Hwan would.)

The next day Jung goes over to one of the senior directors in the company who would usually handle the interviews for new interns. Though he shouldn’t act so familiarly with him (as no one else in the company knows that Jung is the CEO’s son), Jung has a favor to ask.

Turns out, he asked that director to make sure Sang Chul is selected for an interview and to push up the date of the interviews a week earlier. That would mean Sang Chul would have to pick between going to Sunju Produce or Taerang Group! It’s a shock to Sang Chul, Jae Woo, and Do Hyun when they see that Sang Chul got the interview, not the other two. And they have better grades than he does!

That day Jung shows up on campus as well, and Bora and Seol see him talking to Sang Chul. Seol thought that Jung would be angry with him, but it seems that the two are actually having a pleasant conversation. When Jung joins the two girls, Seol invites him to celebrate Bora’s birthday with them and Eun Taek. But Bora magnanimously relieves Seol of her obligation and tells her to go have a date with Jung; they haven’t seen each other in ages anyways. She’ll go eat with Eun Taek instead, and Seol encourages her to talk out her relationship with Eun Taek.

Thing is… Eun Taek doesn’t show up. He texts that he’ll be late because of work, and so Bora decides to leave early. Feeling completely alone and dejected on her birthday she heads home, only to find that Eun Taek is waiting outside her home! He found out through Seol that Bora was all alone, but by the time he got to the restaurant she had left already. Bora isn’t in the mood to talk, as she also drank a bit, but he stops her to give her a gift.

It’s the earrings she picked out at the jewelry store! Of course he knew it was her birthday, and of course he got them for her. He just didn’t want her to know, so he lied about giving it to Mona. Bora starts tearing up, and Eun Taek seriously asks her again – “Am I really not the one for you?” Bora hesitates, and Eun Taek knows that she wants the three of them to be friends forever. However, that also means Bora will have to see Eun Taek date other girls, and he’ll have to watch her date other guys. Would Bora be okay with that?

Bora can’t bring herself to answer, so Eun Taek leaves first, a bit frustrated. Finally she yells out, “I just don’t want to break up with you!” Aww silly girl. It makes Eun Taek so happy that she actually does like him, and he promises he will never leave her side or get sick. And, he will never break up with her. KYAHHHHHHHH! Sho cute…

It also happens to be the first snowfall, and they’re not the only lovebirds enjoying it. As Jung drives Seol home, she excitedly comments on how this is their first snowfall together. She then brings up her courage to ask what Jung was talking to Sang Chul about. He cheerily mentions that Sang Chul got selected to interview as an intern in his company and she scoffs in disbelief. Sang Chul!? But then she begins to wonder – could this be due to Jung pulling some strings? Is he purposely doing this to mess with Sang Chul later on? She dispels her thoughts for now, but wouldn’t put it past him.

Sang Chul begins to rely on Jung more for advice, debating on whether he should go to Sunju Produce (where if he passes, he’s guaranteed a job) or go to Taerang Group (where if he passes, he only gets an internship). Jung offers to give him his old notes for the test and interview questions when he went through it himself, and advises Sang Chul to pay attention to the Chinese market. It could be very big for Taerang Group in the near future. This doesn’t seem to bode very well…

Heading to school, Seol and In Ho walk together and try very hard not to be awkward. He casually invites her to his concours, and she tells him to practice hard because she really will show up. She also returns the scarf that he gave her, as it’s only right. Later when he goes into practice, he finds that his left hand is stiffening up more than usual. Oh boy…

It’s also the morning of the interview, and Sang Chul finds himself picked out by the senior director and wished good luck before the candidates go in. But once he gets into the interview, he’s left on his own devices. An interviewer begins to ask, “Many of the companies in this country are making their way into China lately.” Before the man can even finish, Sang Chul interrupts and loudly claims that Taerang should look into expanding into China because it’s an emerging market.

Except, that’s the wrong answer. The interviewer, who never got to finish the question, mentions that they just closed offices in Shanghai and he was going to ask about how Chinese funds are eroding their domestic corporations. He also is disappointed that Sang Chul didn’t even look up those basics about the company before coming into the interview. Sang Chul realizes that he jumped the gun and tries to salvage himself, but it’s really too late.

Bora and Eun Taek walk around campus holding hands, with Bora being really shy about it. Of course Seol sees it and when she interrupts, Bora tries to pretend that they were never holding hands. Psh… Of course Seol saw it! And now she’s going to tease them! When they get to the school cafe they overhear Sang Chul bemoaning his horrible interview. But no one has much pity for him and won’t go drinking with him later on.

Meanwhile In Ha is lounging at home wondering what to make of In Ho’s offer about moving away together and starting over. She tries to call up Mr. Yoo but he texts her that he’s busy at the moment. She suspects Jung of having said something to his father, but he just tells her to reflect upon her own actions. In his mind, her spoiled behavior is enough to change his father’s perception of her. She then gets a text from Jae Woo, who kinda misses her. At first she’s irritated, but then she realizes she’s got nothing better to do and no money to use. So she’ll meet him!

Seol passes by the small bar where Sang Chul is drinking by himself, and he drags her inside because he wanted to apologize to her. He knows exactly what it means to feel ashamed. Back in his rural town he was considered the smartest one and everyone celebrated when he got into university. But when he got to Seol he realized there were a lot more people who were richer, smarter, and more powerful than he. He thought that he could just endure and fight through it, even juggling three part-time jobs. But somehow things aren’t just working out for him.

Just then Jae Woo and In Ha arrive, and In Ha pushes her way to the same table with them. She’s surprised that Seol would be drinking with other men, and asks if Jung knows about this. At the sound of Jung’s name, Sang Chul feels even worse that Jung helped him with the interview and he still couldn’t even get into Taerang. Just then he starts to throw up and Seol rushes him to the bathroom.

Curious at what Jung did, In Ha asks Jae Woo to tell her exactly what happened between Sang Chul and Jung. That girl is so perceptive, she pretty much says what Seol suspects. When Sang Chul returns to the table, In Ha clearly lays it out for him: Jung screwed him over. He set everything up, made sure that the Taerang interview was the same time as the Sunju Produce one, and then gave him notes. But were they even proper notes? “Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth, notes for notes,” she says simply.

Seol looks like she’s ready to kill In Ha for saying it like that. Even though it might have been necessary, I think Seol was also wondering if this was the right time to tell Sang Chul something like this. Sang Chul himself can’t believe Jung would have so much power to do this anyways, and that’s when In Ha drops the bomb: “Yoo Jung is the only son of the CEO Yoo Young Soo.”

Sang Chul snaps. He’s ready to go kill Jung – if only he weren’t so drunk. He trips over his seat and Jae Woo helps him sit up, while In Ha asks if Seol had no idea whatsoever. She must have had an inkling, didn’t she? In Ha bets that Seol won’t be able to handle Jung, and suggests she leave his side now. It gives Seol some food for thought, and she stops by her uncle’s bar for coffee. In Ho happens to be practicing inside, and when he hears of Seol having some trouble with Jung, he performs the song they played together before, knowing that she can hear it. It’s really soothing, and a really sweet gesture. Ack In Ho – stop being so nice and perfect!

The following day Sang Chul barges into Jung’s office and loudly accuses him of screwing him over because he’s the CEO’s son. Jung tries to get him to shut up, especially since no one knows that he’s the CEO’s son. Security comes in to drag Sang Chul away, but it’s not entirely over yet. Once Sang Chul is let go outside, Jung grabs him and pushes him to a corner. Where did Sang Chul hear about him?

And of course, Sang Chul reveals it’s In Ha. That loudmouth. Jung evenly reminds him that Sang Chul chose the Taerang interview over Sunju Produce and messed up by not preparing properly. Sang Chul replies, “Why are you doing this to me? Is it because I took those measly notes?”

Jung: “‘Measly notes’? So only your stuff is considered precious, but if it’s others’ then it’s ‘measly’? So that’s the kind of person you are. How does it feel to lose a ‘measly’ job then?”

It shakes Sang Chul up, and Jung leaves him. While Jung made a very good point, I kind of hoped he – or someone – would just tell Sang Chul to grow up and stop expecting handouts. In any case, when Jung rounds the corner he receives a very unexpected surprise. Seol was standing nearby, as she had come to visit him. And yes, she heard it all.

But before he can say anything, she embraces him.

Seol: “Don’t say a word. I know what happened and I know why you did it. I think I know how you’re feeling right now too. So don’t be anxious. I won’t ever run away from you.”

And that’s really what Jung needed to hear.

Comments

This was a bit of a crazy episode, based on what it did to my feelings. At one point I feared that Seol was actually developing feelings for In Ho because he liked her too, and she seemed so uncomfortable around him. It would have been so maddening if she decided now to be wishy washy in her feelings too! But thankfully Seol is firmly on Team Jung, and she’s going to be very supportive of her boyfriend.

And then I was worried that I was going to hate Jung for what he did. He was relapsing to his old ways in manipulating others to seek revenge. I had developed some sympathy for Sang Chul when he apologized to Seol, but not enough to make me like him. After all, despite his background he was still a jackass who tried to profit from the hard work of others. He was still someone who expected too many things when he never did a thing to deserve it. But at the same time, Jung’s plan for revenge was a little excessive. Jung purposely misled Sang Chul about the company’s direction, when in the past he would phrase his sentences vaguely enough that you could arguably blame the other for mishearing. And he intentionally messed Sang Chul up over some notes.

Seol saves him at the end, but I worry that it might be a little too late. Jung really needs to stop taking it out on his mooching classmates. (I’m afraid he might even do something to Da Young at this point.) Just because she keeps forgiving him doesn’t mean that Jung should keep doing it. I hope that Jung takes this moment to realize that (1) he is very lucky to have an understanding girlfriend, and (2) he has really gone too far. And hopefully he’ll stop being like this.

I want the smiling, joking, petty Jung back. Not this manipulative one. It’s the only way Jung and In Ho can resume their bromance.

One thought on “Cheese in the Trap: Episode 14 Recap”

Hi! i always love your review! I kinda feel sad how they portrayed Jung like a bad guy in this drama, while In ho beong so nice and perfect. Even in the manhwa version In ho is not that nice and perfect. I hope that they can show more of Jung’s good side just like in the manhwa. :((